Here’s the Service Leaflet for this Choral Evensong.
The Trinity Choir is a consistent example of the highest level of choral excellence.
I had gotten through part of Choral Evensong by the stellar Trinity College Choir from Oxbridge (Trinity College of the University of Cambridge specifically) and noticed that The Trinity Choir was performing the Noble Service in b — some Conservatory training: a lower case b means in b minor; an upper case B means in B major — which I performed years ago. I got to the section where the text is, “He remembering his mercy (pronounced more like “mussy”…”) and The Trinity Choir sang that especially well. It moved me.
My choral friend was nearby and I said: I want you to hear this even though you don’t know the piece (beginning at 24.39 in the video), but listen to how well they sang this. So I started playing that section for him and he said, “I’ve never heard it sung like that.” I asked him: Well where have you heard this sung to begin with to make that comparison? He was just as moved as myself by the beauty of their singing. As it turned out, he had heard this canticle setting as a boy. His parents took him to the local podunk very Low Church Episcopal parish nearby (but his parents didn’t “attend church” themselves) — which he has nothing but negative remembrances about — and what they called “the Choir” in that parish tried to sing the Noble. Since they didn’t have Choral Evensong, I guess they used the Magnificat part as an anthem. He said it sounded nothing like the way Trinity sings it. From what he’s told me about his childhood church, the parish was barely Episcopal. They did some strange things with lots of guilt tripping the few who showed up. But he does remember this piece (the Noble Service in b) from his childhood. I said: Well it would have to be from that time because I don’t remember playing this canticle setting for him. Or maybe I played it for myself and he overheard it sometime in the past. He said it was ina blue book. They had “the blue book, a red book, and the bible.” I said: Well, the blue book would be the hymnal, but canticle settings are not in the hymnal, because canticle settings are not sung by the congregation. The red book would be The Book of Common Prayer. And the bible? What was that doing there? The bible is not there in the pews. I asked: Did they have a service leaflet where parts of the bible along with text from the BCP that they’re using for that liturgy would be printed? He said they had a service leaflet of sorts but it didn’t have the liturgy on it.
He asked me, “do the choristers hear how gorgeous they sound?” Yes of course they do and it’s why they’re able to listen to each other and to hear the entire Choir to perfectly blend their voices, and their balance of sections is perfect as well.
He asked: When you sang the Noble Service in b with the Cathedral Choir of Men and Boys was it that good? I think so. The Cathedral Choir at that time was superb — they’re not now; I think something happened to them during COVID and they never recovered — but I remembering us singing this and that section I played for my choral friend has stayed with me because of its beauty.
He said, “Anglicans have the best Choirs.” I agree and it’s part of what is known as the “Rich Anglican Choral Tradition.” I’m not aware that any other Christian “denomination” has that distinction or what is known as a “Choral Tradition.”
I’m slow to talk about best this and best that because that’s what the US does when trying to convince themselves — with chest-beating — about how they think they’re the “greatest country on Earth” and all that nationalistic rubbish. Well, they, along with the #2 terrorist nation of Israel (the US being the #1 terrorist nation), are the greatest at killing (innocent) people whilst they claim to be Christians (and Jews) and believe in the Commandments, one of which is “Thou Shalt Not Kill.” What part of that very basic and straight forward Commandment do these Christian Fraud trash not understand? That commandment does not come with any exceptions or caveats to it, such as, “That Commandment really applies only to such and such” excuses or “That doesn’t apply to the State so the States can kill anybody they want,” nonsense. And how do Jews rationalise that in their minds? Or are they just as fraudulent and fake as the Christian Frauds? I. suspect. so.
As of this writing it is Lent, so most Anglican/Episcopal parishes and cathedral churches choose more “toned down” repertoire. There’s a run on Renaissance music during Lent. With some exceptions, you’re not likely to hear the Howells’s St Paul’s Service or Gloucester Service during Lent or anything “grand and glorious.” “Grand and glorious” is saved for the First through Seventh Sundays of Easter. (Yes, Southern Baptists: There are seven Sundays in Easter, but you wouldn’t know anything about that). In recent years, I’ve noticed some churches bucking that silly tradition of having to programme all “toned down” music during Lent.